Which has higher fish landings and discards, China or United States?

United States, at 674,076 against 609,409 in China as of 2018.

What is the difference in fish landings and discards between China and United States?

64,667, with United States ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States?

69 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2018.

Where does this data come from?

Sea Around Us (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Fish landings and discards. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

China vs United States: Fish landings and discards

China

609,409

in 2018

United States

674,076

in 2018

China rank

3rd

United States rank

2nd

Fish landings and discards over time

China
United States

How they compare

United States currently reports 674,076 against 609,409 in China, a difference of 64,667.

That makes United States's figure about 1.1 times China's.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 69 shared years of data; in 1950 it was United States ahead.

China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd of 161 countries.

United States has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	China	United States	Difference	Ahead
1950s	8,099	959,818	951,718	United States
1960s	13,963	854,360	840,396	United States
1970s	41,107	850,208	809,101	United States
1980s	87,030	1.03 million	941,867	United States
1990s	170,162	1.14 million	965,610	United States
2000s	221,703	880,460	658,757	United States
2010s	508,899	745,484	236,585	United States

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher fish landings and discards, China or United States?: United States, at 674,076 against 609,409 in China as of 2018.
What is the difference in fish landings and discards between China and United States?: 64,667, with United States ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States?: 69 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2018.
How do China and United States rank globally for fish landings and discards?: China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd of 161 countries.
Where does this data come from?: Sea Around Us (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Fish landings and discards. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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China vs United States: Fish landings and discards. Statizoid, drawing on Sea Around Us (2020) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://agriculture.statizoid.com/compare/fish-landings-and-discards/china/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator: Fish landings and discards
Source: Sea Around Us (2020) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 161 places, 9,371 data points, 1950–2018
Last refreshed: 28 August 2026

– Landings represent aquatic animals that are caught and brought ashore for use. – Discards are animals thrown back (alive or dead) into the sea after being caught during fishing activities.